Everlasting Soul
by Elchikaah Haly
Summary: Their trip to the Tower of Guidance could be their last adventure. Oscar x Kieran fic, not much romance, though.
1. Prologue

_Hey there! This is Elchi! I planned to do this story as a comic, but my life's too busy, lulz. So instead, I'll make a fan fic! Unlike my other fic, this one has BL (boy love)__. I'm pairing Oscar and Kieran, which is my OTP! Aren't they just lovely together? And beside, there are so many hints that give so much sense to that pairing!_

_I must also give a great thanks to Brokenzero for the inspiration, Vikki for the title, and Yuki for the beta reading! _:)_  
_

_**Disclaimer:**_**_ I do not own Fire Emblem and its characters. Intelligent Systems and Nintendo own them._**

**Prologue**

The moral of the troop seemed to be at its lowest point that day, and for good reason. After what looked like eternal miles of walking and war here and there, anyone would just want true peace that would last for a long time. But then , to achieve this, we didn't have much of a choice but to get inside the huge tower of Begnion, the great home of our goddess, Ashera. Ironically, to find that peace we were all striving for, we must stop idolizing her like we did all our life and throw away our past to defeat that humble divine entity.

Well, "humble" was a word which took all my pride to use when I was speaking about her. She wasn't that humble, honestly. Beside, I never saw her in person before; not even anyone else to my knowledge.

As soon as I put a foot inside the majestic tower, a cold chill took over my veins, strangely thrilled over the action that will probably come soon. Even if we had to defeat that goddess we cherished so much, each of us would tremble in expectation to the idea of seeing and contemplating her. What did she look like, how powerful was she, and stuff like that, you know?

Arrgh! What a thought! The only goal of Ashera was to destroy this world that she believed to be too much chaotic for her taste. Well, she was right in a sense; this world was chaotic. But… destroying this world would also mean having to witness everyone's death, and that was not acceptable!

Oh, if only she knew… that in this chaotic world that she created and wanted to put an end to, there were such beautiful things. Did she know that without the evil, there would be no good? The chaos existed to give us the craving of life, the desire to fight for the people we love.

Without that chaos, I could have never met him, that partner, that friend, that dear…

…rival.

I shall continue to fight with you!

-----Lalala-----

Sitting on my horse, we were slowly walking, following the small army of goddess Yune, the other half of the cursed goddess we were going to fight. Each of us was chosen carefully by the general Ike. How delighted I was! I, the Crimean Royal Knight's Second-in-command Kieran, was to take part of the ultimate battle that will tell the destiny of the entire humanity! How was I trembling of joy! When I get back from the tower, I will be known as a great hero, not only in Crimea, but in all Tellius! Rah, how exciting this will be!

Humm…

Really, what shall I do after? I'll get the fame, a title in this world and everyone who will see me shall enthusiastically scream: "Oh Goddess! It's the Great Kieran, one of the heroes of the continent! Hurrah for Kieran!"

Wait a minute; I still need something to spice it up. Something would be missing.

As soon as I put my sight on him, I realized why.

Of course, he was also one of those who were to fight in the great tower with his two brothers. We weren't the only ones; a dozen others were as well.

On one side, we had some people from our rival country, Daein. There was the young Sothe, whom has greatly grown up since the last war against Ashnard. Wait, he had more than grown up: he became a man! A true one, who stood ready to protect the one he had been searching so hard for. She is the one we all called the "Maiden of Dawn" and the only light of hope for a country ravaged by the ruin and poverty: she was Micaiah. Where did her powers come from? That I'll probably never know, but one thing was sure: she was the key to our eventual success by being the divine contact of our goddess, Yune.

Oh, but indeed, her physical force couldn't be compared to mine! Ah! Take that, maiden of dawn!

Heh, enough of me, let's get back to our main subject.

Still from Daein came two kids, one with the name of Edward and the other Leonardo. Why the heck did the general choose them? How could I know? But when I took a look at them, I could see resolve in their innocent eyes. Maybe the fall of their old protector was the cause of it, a man with the name of Nolan. I heard he was a brave warrior who lost everything before the last war, but despite all of this, he took care of those two young orphans. If that was so, I could understand their determination, even at their age. They didn't lead an easy life, these poor things. Some told me they were still pretty skilled with their respective weapons and that they had a huge potential for starting their fighting more than early in their lives.

Two more from Daein made their appearance: Aran, an ex-soldier of Begnion, and his faithful childhood friend, Laura, a young, beautiful priestess. Aran joined the army of dawn with the Daein after he noticed Laura within their group. He knew of Begnion's abusive powers on Daein, but the only reason he was working with them was to get a decent job. What people would do to gain their earnings!

A little far ahead, I could see a group who would rather stay a little away from the rest. I could distinguish the powerful prince of the dragon laguz who, oddly, looked so frail compared to everyone else. I never saw him in a fight, but he was probably stronger than he looked. I heard he still had destroyed a whole castle tower with one single breath attack! Around him stood Ena, one of his dragon laguz partners, ready for everything to help her prince in being more trusting of his natural primal skills and being able to handle the sight of blood. She was one of those whom I admired for her willpower because of the loss of her fiancé during the last war, and indirectly, he fell by the hand of our general Ike. She had accepted his fate as nothing else could have been done. Life couldn't be more ironic.

From the same group was one of the legendary heron laguz from the royal family of Serenes. His majestic look and his stunning beauty picked up everyone else's curiosity. He had the power to make a weary person feel much more powerful after the exhaustion of a fight, giving him or her a magical feeling of maximum vitality. Rafiel would be indeed very useful to us. Near him stood the young and admirable empress of Begnion, the biggest country of all Tellius. Despite her appearance, she, the little Sanaki, was more than innocent; she was a little unbearable because of her title of empress, wanting us all to call her by her superior name. In these times when the destiny of the whole world was at the hand of a small handful group, why bothering for such little things like our social rank? Well, whatever. What counted the most about her was her powerful skills with fire magic.

Here were some of more familiar faces! As I can see, the general might have a secret preference over his little mercenary group over the rest to explore the tower. There was Mia, a swordmaster in a quest of a rival all the time, which made her more and more skilled with her weapon. Beside her stood an old friend of mine, a fragile and yet a very determined priest who wanted to become stronger, so he decided to completely abandon the goddess he pried for all his life. Meet Rhys, the young man who wished everyone happiness.

Truthfully, a rumor said that he was, in fact, the rival Mia was seeking for according to a fortuneteller; she told her something like "your rival will come in his white robe, riding toward you on a mount". If that was the case, I was sure it was only an excuse to hang around him. Ha! I could see the love!

Behind the imposing shadow of general Ike was the small but skillful and intelligent Soren, an enigmatic sage who refused to get far from the one he considered his only friend. Mysterious, that boy… I wished to understand him. Everyone admired him for his talent of strategist and his strategies that led his group to many victories, and, regardless of all, he would only trust Ike.

Here were the last ones, the three brothers of the Greil mercenaries. Despite their differences, nothing was more admirable then the bond that kept them together and their skills to fight. The youngest, Rolf, was an incomparable archer, being able to defeat an enemy in one shot at one specific spot. I wondered who taught him such techniques… I really hoped it was not that corrupted master sniper of the mercenaries, that red-headed, long-haired alcoholic whom I forgot his name. Here was the second brother, Boyd, a ferocious warrior who could easily handle the axe weapon, just like me, ha! Honestly, I liked that guy, since he had chosen a great weapon for himself! Even though he was a little clumsy and immature by nature, his strength of mind and his great love for his family made him more likeable than loathsome.

And there was the oldest of the brothers.

Damn it…

I blushed at the only thought of him. How could he accomplish such feat? He was the only one capable of it! Not even that woman, one of my closest companions, Marcia, was capable of it!

My ultimate rival, Oscar…

Well, while we were at it…

Meet Oscar, the oldest of the three brothers (oh goddess, I felt like repeating!) and an old Crimean royal knight. You would ask me… old? Why would he leave the knights where I also belonged? Obviously, I knew him too much, that old friend; he was too noble to leave because of the fear of combat and death.

Oh wait, back then, I wasn't so sure anymore.

Then, why?

I remembered the time when he left us, around ten years earlier… Well, actually, I did not see him go directly. After a long and painful fight against some random rebels, I fell. Yes, even I, the great Kieran, can fall, but let's not discuss about this (hey, I was weaker back then!). I was stuck in some nursery tent, and, for a week, nurses would use some sleep staves to keep me down on my bed. Oh, but I realized, much later after I woke up from my recovery bed, that something was missing; or rather, someone. Then I heard, one day from my old knights' pals, about some squinty boy who left suddenly without a word, even leaving most of his personal stuff in his room.

That cur! How could he leave us like that? That was the worst thing a knight could have done for the country he loved! That traitor!

I couldn't understand, leaving behind him his title of royal knight, his glory, his fame, and his friends! I even heard a rumor that he was going to be promoted to captain! But, no! He had to leave everything behind like that! I even started to think that he joined those Daein curs!

Despite all of this, somehow, our commander did not speak ill of him. So, if he left, there must be a reason.

Until recently, I never knew why he left the knights, he who dreamed so much of being a hero, like all of us, after all. I learned, seven years later, during the war against Ashnard, the real motive of his departure. Rolf's mother, the only person who could take care of the family in their birth hometown, far from the capital, suddenly abandoned every one of them to live with another man, leaving alone a frail little Rolf and a confused young Boyd. The later one was, despite his juvenile age back then, forced to take care of both his little brother and his sick father, resting on his bed, only waiting for his upcoming death. Desperate, Boyd sent a letter to his oldest brother (who was with us in the capital as a knight), begging for him to come back home, without knowing what to do to survive this whole mess. Without hesitating, Oscar didn't lose any time and sacrificed all his fame to save his little family.

Wow, what a bitch, that mother…

So that was the reason why the commander didn't think of anything bad about his parting.

Even though he had lost many, he continued to smile of his fate despite all. If he had lost his glory and his father during that incident, he still had his two little brothers whom he loved so much. When I thought about that, that young man really became a hero; without him, his brothers would have probably joined in the rank of death like their old man.

Ah, my dear rival, you still had not changed after all these years.

That's good, stay that way…

* * *

_I was going to make the whole fan fic in one chapter, but it was getting long, so yep._

_Lulz, Kieran being thoughtful. OMG, Kieran, thinking? Well, probably, lol. Yes, most of these facts mentioned in the fic are canon, including the Dawn Brigade people and the three brothers' stuff, as well as the « rival » Mia is searching for. The only thing I created for this fic is the part when Kieran mentions his tale when he was blacked out.  
_

_Next chapter is going to have more action, lol._


	2. Quarrels

_Let's give this part some brothers' friendship, shall we? Oh, and there is mention of some Rolf and Mist love because this pairing is much better than Boyd x Mist, to me, lulz. Yey for opinions!_

_****__Disclaimer:_**_ I do not own Fire Emblem and its characters. Intelligent Systems and Nintendo own them._**

**Chapter 1: Quarrels**

I suddenly came back into reality, thanks to a certain shriek. Wait… A scream? Oh! A fight? Quick! Where was my axe? Where were the enemies? I was ready for…

It was to my disappointment that I realized that the scream came from a simple quarrel between Boyd and Rolf; it was just a plain one. Damn, what a deception! And I thought I was going to be able to use my new axe now…

"Ouch! Boyd!" the younger teen shouted while clumsily stroking the top of his head with frustration. "What's your problem? Why did you hit me on the head?"

The older brother started to chuckle in a mocking manner. "With that huge thickness of your skull that keeps your little brain, you shouldn't even feel anything!"

"Damn it! Do you see a helmet on my head?"

The tone went higher. "Hey! Did you listen to what I just said?"

And again. "It hurts! You're just an idiot!"

The warrior exploded. "What the… Just shut your mouth, you little-"

"Boyd, that's enough!"

The last sentence came from neither the two quarreling brothers, but from, you might have guessed, none other than their oldest brother, Oscar. In fact, his voice had such an effect over both of them that there was an awkward silence for a minute. Embarrassed, Boyd scratched his head, his sight slightly on the side, fixed on the ground.

It was pretty hard to imagine that such a tall, muscular man with the look of a devastating warrior to submit himself to a much thinner man who appeared like an individual as sympathetic and serene as a heron laguz. Bah, what was my opinion about this whole mess?

He had the same effect on me, after all!

Soon, the effect became a need, then after, the irresistible.

"Oscar!"

Oh, that was from me, this time.

My rival, calmly on his mare, as always, hesitated to turn to me a moment before sending me back that affectionate smile he kept in permanence on himself. "Oh, yes, Kieran?" he replied, finally.

There were few seconds of quietness. Oh no, quick, Kieran, think of something to say! Ah yes! Of course! I took my proud posture and I pointed my axe at him. He knew me too well as he didn't even flinch a millimeter. "Oscar!" I shouted. "You cur! You fought for our country, I am the Crimean royal knight second in command Kieran, and you… are my rival! I- I…" I never dared to tell him before, or to anyone else for the matter, but his military skills back then were superior to mine, and I wouldn't be able to imagine what could be his actual rank if he had stayed with the knights in Melior. "I order you to come back with us! You have all the talents in the world to become a knight again! It is your duty to proudly protect your country, the beautiful Crimea! Wasn't that your dream? The glory, the fame, the fortune! Right now, I'm offering you the absolute choice of all the three! This is an offer you can not refuse!"

Even though his smile slightly curled down a little, he kept his cool. I had already offered this opportunity before, but I knew his answer. Why was I persisting if the wanted result would probably never come?

Maybe I was really missing him…

Oscar sighed a little before he came up with his generic reply. Generic? Well that answer was very much expected from him. "Kieran…" he started, slowly. "You know too well that I love my life with the mercenaries, and my entire family is within this little group. I thank you for your offer, but…" Maybe it was only me, but it seemed that I picked up, at that very moment, indecision in his voice. What if he really wanted to come back? That "but" could have thousand of meanings. Alas, I dreamed too much. "…but helping people on their side has always been what I wanted to do. You know knights can't do that, but with my family, I have the possibility."

I went lost in my thoughts. But… blast! What will happen after the defeat of the goddess? Must we stay separated for the rest of our lives, or wait until another war? Just thinking about it made me sick.

Until another voice took over the situation, a voice that might forever change the destiny I was prepared for. "Aw, Oscar, stop it!" the young Rolf exclaimed, his arms crossed, with a slight scornful grin and a strong sight on him. "You would never stop speaking about your life with the knights! Every single one of us knows you want to return there!"

My members started to shake while I was attentively listening to him. Was my rival's little brother saying the truth? I turned to the oldest brother again and I could read tension on his face.

Soon, it was Boyd's turn to speak. "You know, big brother, for once, Rolfie is right! And that reminds me when you spoke about joining the knights when we were younger. I remember how happy you looked! When you succeeded, it was obvious you loved it, really!"

"Yeah!" the youngest one continued. "And… just look at me! I'm older and bigger now! I can take care of myself, and if I have problems, there are still the mercenaries who can help me!"

"Pah! You, bigger? You must be joking!"

Rolf gave an amicable elbow pat on his second brother. "Hey! I'm a big teenager, you know?"

My attention returned to Oscar once again. The man seemed to be thoughtful, compassionately listening to his two brothers. His head lowered toward the ground, he started to murmur. "Boyd, Rolf…" With a straight posture now, he took a look at them with a sight of joy, his eyelids high enough to reveal those stunning, shining, secret green eyes behind them. The chill took over me when my eyes crossed them. "I- I… thank you for your support…"

Oh, happy day…

Oscar was coming back to us! That revelation was literally screaming it! Don't you think?

-----OhOhOh-----

The road in the tower persisted for a while without any kind of skirmish, beside some quarrels here and there within our little group, not only with the two immature brothers, but from others as well. Sometimes, I could hear those two boys from Daein having arguments about war and easy life. I heard that blond-haired boy, Leonardo, actually came from a family of nobles, but his parents and brother fell under the blade of enemies during the Mad King's war, then he witnessed the disappearance of all his comrades by the Begnion's occupation over Daein. The other one, Edward, like Sothe, was orphaned from his parents at a very young age, which forced him to live in the back alleys in total poverty. Beside their social differences, they seemed very close friends, but that didn't stop them from quarreling over simple things. Oh, now and then, I could still hear Mia yelling at Rhys, begging him to try her sword and challenge her, pretending she would go easy on him so he can get better gradually. That poor Rhys.

Oh, and, of course, there was me, insulting my dear rival. He didn't seem to mind as he kept smiling. -- I think he secretly loves it though!

Oh, how I was dreaming of our victory after the end of this silly war! I was imagining myself returning to Crimea and when I'll see my old pals again, with Oscar, indeed! His return with the knights would bring much surprise since some of the friends he had during the past years were still with us!

Once again, another loud sound broke me away from my dreams, and, as always, the sound came from the same person. The little Rolf accidentally fell down and hurt his ankle. A few of our companions started to gather around him. They were hastily trying to get him on his two feet, but his ankle hurt so much that he couldn't keep his strength to stand. Boyd was quickly trying to reach one of the healers of the group, but all of them seemed to be a little far behind, discussing of "who knew what kind of stuff", totally oblivious of what just happened. After all, the tower was vast and the stairs seemed eternal. As Boyd ran to the two visible priests far away, Oscar came down from his mare to join his little brother. He took him in his arms and sat him carefully on the mount. Rolf would feel much more at ease to not have to walk for a while, until his older brother took out his vulnerary to apply it gently on the boy's ankle.

"But, big brother, it's your last vulnerary…" Rolf lamented.

The other held his calm and literally ignored what the younger one just said. "Are you feeling better?" Oscar asked, trying to reassure the little brother with his likeable smile.

"Yeah but… what are you going to do without medicine? Rhys could have healed my ankle!"

"Don't worry about it, Rolf. Rhys is a little far at this moment. It's futile to wait for him more. The more you wait for him to get here, the more it hurts. The less you wait, the better, no?"

Ha! That man! He was always there for the others. During his time with the knights, he was like that as well. How nostalgic I could suddenly feel!

Boyd and Rhys came back later, and the priest attentively examined the boy's ankle. The injury didn't seem too bad after Oscar applied the vulnerary, but the priest wouldn't take any chance for anymore bad luck to come since the injury could amplify itself in a real fight. The young priest lowered his healing staff and began his spell. A faint light started to appear around the little magic staff crystal and Rolf could feel anew. As soon as the priest finished his work, the three brothers thanked him and he returned to his other new priestess friend. It seemed he very much liked the presence of someone who had the same occupation as him.

Rolf was ready to get down from the mare but his older brother wouldn't allow him. "You should stay on her, we never know." Oscar told him with a confident tone while holding the mount's leash.

"Oh, but I'm all right, I swear!" the younger one exclaimed.

The knight was still stubborn as a mule, and decidedly, nothing could make his mind change; Rolf knew it.

The walk continued for a good half an hour with the general and the goddess Yune speaking, or maybe it was Micaiah, or maybe… I wasn't so sure anymore… Sometimes it was Yune, sometimes it was Micaiah. I think it was Yune at that instant, using the maiden of dawn's body as a vessel to communicate with the rest. She was telling all of us the interesting story of our ancestors, and apparently, both laguz and beorcs shared the same ancestry! What a surprise! What about all those stupid wars between our races, then? All those years and lives wasted by the humanity's stupidity… We were definitely learning a lot from her.

The group's peace was broken when the commander spoke of hearing strange but familiar armory sounds. He immediately guessed that it was Ashera's "Chosen Ones" or the army of order. The "Chosen Ones" were the enemies we must defeat without leaving a single one. Fortunately, despite our lower units' number, we had the advantage of staying together and more fighting experience. But we must keep our guard.

With each of us alerted, everyone was ready to strike, everyone holding decisively our respective weapon. Finally, some real action! I was getting bored! Let's hope everything will be alright (but then, with the great knight Kieran in this group, nothing can beat us!).

On one side, Rolf jumped from the mare and stood up quickly on his two legs with a sarcastic grin on his face. "Ha! You see?" the boy shouted proudly. "I can walk correctly now! You don't have to worry about me!"

The green haired knight sent him back a smile before mounting the beast. He readied his lance, holding it in his strong hands. "I know, little brother. You are more talented than I expected." He mentioned, encouraging. "But don't let your guard down. Our enemies aren't ordinary foes. Don't get too far from the group. The key to our success is to stay together."

With a bored look, Rolf rolled his eyes with a sigh. "Yeah, yeah, I know! You told me at least one hundred times…"

Suddenly a hand was wildly stroking his hair. Visibly annoyed, Rolf turned around to see Boyd with a disdainful look. "Yet, you forget all the time, little brat!" the older brother yelled, severely. "Each time, we would come for you, and each time, we were on the verge to be killed because of your negligence!"

The youngest one lowered his head. It was true he would usually stray away from the group, too confident of his developed skills after each battle, but how many times did they have to make him realized that no one was invincible, and that included our goddess as well. "All right, no time for crying!" Boyd made the remark, more seriously this time. "There's a fight that's going to start! Get ready, and don't die!"

Soon, the commander Ike gave everyone the signal to attack, and the fight had officially begun. Oh my, how many of the Chosen Ones were they? So many, but rest assured, no one can resist my marvelous axe and my personality! Those silly troops of the army of order will regret having sided with the wrong goddess!

I rushed to the cursed army with Chili. My mount seemed to be as excited as me. Well, he did taste, after all these training years, the hunger for war and action! Oooh, what did I see? A soldier far from his allies; here was my chance! I ran to him, my axe ready above my shoulders, and a cry of war got out from my own lips. The soldier readied his lance by pointing it toward me but he stood no chance before me because of my power and my devotion! And bam! In one strike from my wonderful axe, here he was, falling on his knees, bloodstained, then nothing more for him.

Another victory for the Crimean royal knights second in command Kieran!

-----YurFaisIsBeautiful-----

Oh no! What did he do again? Where were the others? And why were there so many enemies around him? Oh, he remembered! Damnit, he should have listened to his brothers for once! But, with that lone weeping valkyrie, crying with fear in a corner and afraid of the death, how could he have killed her? No one wanted to submit to their enemies, and she was no exception. Taking pity from her, the young archer had approached her, holding out his hand to her, suddenly thinking of his friend, Mist.

Ha, Mist! He was wondering how she was handling the enemies outside the tower, along with all the other friends. Oh Mist, how her eyes could shine the hope, her beauty could lighten everywhere she was going, her purity could show…

…blood, coming out from his arm?

He woke up from his sudden thoughts, noticing before him the valkyrie with an evil grin stuck on her face, holding a sword soiled of his own blood. Strange, how could a young girl suddenly change her behavior in such short time? What if it was a trick to lure him?

Damn, not again!

Trying to handle the painful injury in his arm, Rolf quickly stepped away, running while carrying his bow in one hand and his deep wound with the remaining one. Quick, an arrow! He couldn't afford to lose any second now. Swift as the lightning, he took an arrow and quickly pointed it at the young valkyrie. Without even hesitating, forgetting Mist a moment, he shot the projectile. Ironically, the weapon plunged straight into the girl's right side of the chest, directly in her heart. The dying girl started to cry some real tears before closing her eyes forever.

How the feeling of regret became stronger. Why should he care about the death of an enemy who didn't feel any pity? Because she was a girl? That was ridiculous; an enemy was an enemy, period! There was nothing to worry about! What about his enemies, how would they feel if they killed his own family? Just thinking about it made him ill.

"Well, let's put our emotion aside and let's fight, because here are four soldiers around me…" So that was what happened, getting stuck between enemies because of his feelings for a mad valkyrie. This time, he must use all his strength to survive, despite his injured arm. He won't let his guard down, oh no, not a second time!

One of the soldiers ran toward him, trying to impale him with his lance. Rolf dodged the attack by rolling on the ground and skillfully shot an arrow on the forehead of an upcoming enemy. As the dying unit heavily fell on the ground, another soldier, a swordmaster, jumped on him with a sword. The young archer skillfully dodged the strike and shot another, but missing him. Argh! Not now, it wasn't the time to fail! His hearing could perceive steps behind him, running to him very quickly, and having no quick reflex to shoot another arrow, he decided to crouch on all four on the ground. His fast reaction saved him from a blow that could have killed him as the swordmaster behind him awkwardly hung on him on the foot and fell off on the ground. He was nearly a goner!

He placed his hand above his shoulder for another arrow. "C'mon, Rolf! Get up fast! Only three more to finish! Just another shot, quick-"

His blood froze cold as death as he could only find emptiness at the end of his fingers. Oh no… He tried again and again, but he realized that he had no more ammunition. For an instant, he stopped moving but he kept his eyes wide opened, soon thinking about what was about to come: his own doom. No, not now… Not now! There were still many things to learn: Shinon, his master, promised him to teach him all his secrets of archery; his brothers promised him an awesome gift when they'll come back home; and he promised himself to reveal his love to the beautiful Mist.

But it seemed it was not possible anymore.

With his now crushed dreams, Rolf's eyes started to water sad tears and then he closed them, trying to keep some happy thoughts as the three enemies came up slowly to him with evil grins.

That was until the three bad guys became two.

He couldn't believe his eyes. He opened them, and one of the enemies had fallen down, his face covered with blood, disfigured by the end of a pointy and sharp lance held in the hands of… Oscar?

The enemies and Rolf himself were so worried about themselves they stopped paying attention to the gallops made by the knight's mare when she approached the scene with her master. With everyone not paying attention of what just happened, Oscar just stood there, a smile on his face, glad he could have saved his little brother from his doom. "Rolf…" the knight said so peacefully as if nothing happened. "You are injured and you don't have any arrows left. Go join our friends, I'll come back later." He then turned to the two enemies still with the same smile just to tick off the enemies. "You two, soldiers of Begnion, come and get someone worthy of your height!"

With his bloody lance and his proud stature, Oscar ordered his mare to get away from the scene, forcing the two soldiers into following him as the knight was more dangerous at this time, thinking of finishing the little brat later.

What a nice diversion, to tell the truth.

Not knowing what to think, the archer fell on his knees, watching his brother move away in the horizon until he was not visible anymore. That big brother, always there to save his little family from all kinds of situations! Relief finally took him, but what was going to happen to him? Why did his brother have to get that far to distance the enemies from himself? What if something awful would happen to him later? Ah no! That couldn't be! It was Oscar he was thinking of, old Crimean royal knight and one of the oldest members of the Greil mercenaries. Nothing could stop him!

The unexpected calm made him realized how much his injured arm hurt. He held it firmly with his delicate hands, trying to get a hold of himself.

"Huh? Are you hurt?" a little voice murmured.

Rolf turned around to see near him the one person called the "Maiden of Dawn", Micaiah. "Oh, lady Micaiah? W- What are you doing here?" the boy asked, nervously. Truthfully, he had never addressed her before, so words didn't quite come out great.

Micaiah started to smile with a reassured look. "I… I felt something around here, a danger of some sort, so I came, but I'm seeing you are all well, except your arm, but…"

The young teen reddened a little. "Ah, this? This is nothing, I had worse before."

"Let me see your injury." The young woman crouched to the injury's level then she took a look over it. Rolf could only feel awkwardness around her until, all of a sudden, a little chant reassured both his spirit and his body; his injury was getting healed! So that was it, that famous ability he heard from the lips of those two guys, Edward and Leonardo, a while ago: the skill of Sacrifice.

As soon as the chant faded away, Micaiah began to feel weak. Before she fell down on the floor, Rolf caught her in his arms. The woman rose up her eyelids. She looked happy. "Thanks for catching me, little Rolf."

Rolf reddened again. He was not very used to get complimented by a girl, especially not from a "stranger". "Huh, that was nothing, lady! And thanks for healing my arm, it doesn't hurt anymore!"

Something still worried her, like a terrible feeling. Why was her body still shaking in fear?

The archer got up swiftly, making a step toward where the rest of the group was. "C'mon, Lady Micaiah! We must get help! My brother… Oscar is alone fighting more enemies!"

The young woman stopped, freezing. "Rolf, did you mention your brother?"

"Yeah! We must be quick!"

So that was it, the feeling of danger she could feel. It didn't come from the boy, but from his older brother.

"Lady Micaiah? What are you doing?"

"I- I… Fine, I'll come…"

* * *

_Ohhhh, mysterious upcoming action! Oh, and I am aware that there is no valkyrie enemy in RD, but I bet there could be some in a whole true big army. So yep. Oh, and yes, Kieran's horse is canonly male. It's mentioned in his support with Marcia in PoR. As for Oscar's horse, well I don't know, but making her female gives a softer side to him, haha._


	3. Holding Rope

_Last chapter! What's going to happen? Well there's fluff here, I think..._

_**Disclaimer:**_**_ I do not own Fire Emblem and its characters. Intelligent Systems and Nintendo own them._**

**Chapter 2: Holding rope**

All he could hear was Lass's gallops, his own breathing and the steps made by the two soldiers who were following him, somehow now four. It seemed the goddess hid her units pretty much everywhere in this tower; oh well. What ever happened, he had moved away the bad guys far enough from his little brother. It was out of the question for him to see someone so young to die now, and especially not a member of the family he had cherished so much all his life, the same one he took care of after all these years of sacrifices, oh no!

He stopped with his mare and readied his lance. Four enemies were after him, and the only way to get out from this mess was to get rid of them. It was either him or them, and he was determined to finish this as soon as he could. He really wanted to enjoy the offer his rival was giving him.

There he went, rushing at one of them hastily, dodging his strike, then with a blow from behind, he finished him quickly by impaling him in the skull (because there was nothing he hated more than to contemplate his foe dying in a long and painful death, so the faster, the better). Three more left. Here was the swordmaster from before, the same one after his brother, hurrying toward him with a sword swing that scared the mare. The poor swordmaster became an easy pray to the mount as he was directly placed under her lifted hooves. The animal fearfully sank them straight into the man, completely trampling him in a pool of blood. Two left.

Oscar could detect behind him more fast steps and noticed a mage not too far, starting his invocation. Quickly, he took out the bow given by his archer brother and even before the mage could do a single thing, he shot one arrow in the forehead of his enemy, killing him instantly.

But there was another one. Where was the forth one? It was soon Lass started to panic and jump all around like mad, throwing the knight away from her, to his surprise. The sound made by his contact on the ground was so loud it could almost be heard in the whole tower. Such pain could resonate in his whole body after the falling with heavy armor, and he wasn't obviously feeling very well. When he finally succeeded in raising his head up, he noticed an arrow lodged into the shoulder of his poor mare who was still jumping in pain. So there was the last enemy, an archer.

The foe shot another arrow toward the knight, taking advantage of his few seconds of confusion while he was trying to get up. A scream escaped from his own mouth as the arrow lodged into his waist, but he was fortunate it didn't go too deep inside. The archer shot another one but the knight dodged the projectile, only getting protected by his own armor.

With one quick move, Oscar got up and painfully took out the arrow from his flesh with a small, agonizing cry. He took his lance, and without an instant, instead of mounting his mare to lose time, he rushed to the archer, running as fast as he could. Confidently, the enemy still stood on his place and shot again. Swiftly, the knight crouched during his track to dodge the projectile and threw his lance at the man, which entered into the middle of his neck. The archer finally fell down to his death.

Finally, that fight was over. He could feel more relaxed as he let one hand fall down with relief, and another one holding his injury on the waist, fixing the horizon. ( No one else was around, and his group was not visible to him anymore, nor he could hear them, but at least all the enemies were gone, for now. ) With the fight done, he then smiled again, thinking of rejoining the others. Like him, Lass started to calm down as she was trained to stabilize herself in case of an injury.

While he was petting his mare's snout, the knight finally sank into a world of day dream, where he could be at peace with tranquility, relaxing under a great tree before a wonderful sunset. He took the opportunity to try to sit down and take a nap, a luxury he didn't get access so often since that stupid war. Lying down softly on the tree's foot, he began to watch the beautiful sky before he escaped himself into a good sleep.

"Oscar!"

Curses, who could have broken his nap like that? "Oscar, you fool! Where are you?"

That was Kieran's voice. What was he doing around here? He looked straight up to find the one who had proclaimed him as his ultimate rival. Something was wrong with him, though. Firstly, he didn't wear his famous royal red armor but the one all the rookie knights who were still not promoted. Secondly, his physical appearance seemed to be… few years younger.

"Ha! There you are, you runaway!" the red haired knight shouted out, all in rage with slight worry on his face. "How dare you disobey the captain's orders? Don't ever leave the base without proper reasons! Renegade! Did you ever forget about the Daein spies that roam around the land to stop those imprudent, lonely knights?"

What? Captain? Daein? Base? Weren't they in that Begnion tower, fighting the goddess's army?

Wait a minute… What about the sun, the tree and that fresh herb on the ground… There weren't any of those things in the tower.

Oh, so it was just a dream… of déjà-vu, a scene he took part of a little before he left the knights.

Since he was in a dream, Oscar decided to play along. "Oh, I'm sorry, Kieran." the green-haired knight answered. "I must have… fallen asleep while I was walking around."

Kieran, unexpectedly more enthusiast, grabbed his rival's shoulders to shake him a little. "I was worried sick, you know?"

The one and only young man who called himself the "greatest knight ever with absolutely no fear", Kieran, was worried about him, his great rival? "Miserable cur! N-No one worries the great knight Kieran I am!"

The calmer young man curled up his lips after these revelations. Each time Kieran fussed about anything, it made him smile. Kieran was, after all, one of the main reasons why he had so much fun serving a country he loved. "Kieran… Did you really worry about me?"

The other reddened with hate. "I- I meant… _WE_ were worried about you! Everyone was searching for you, you know?" Kieran couldn't hide that hint of lie, and Oscar could see it clearly.

But as always, Oscar followed the flow of his friend's actions. "If you say so, I'll return to the base, then." he finally told Kieran while he was getting up.

"Excellent!" the other exclaimed, suddenly happier. "Don't ever die on me, squinty boy!"

Oscar started to laugh a little. "Haha! Of course n-"

He suddenly felt his belly in an explosion, and soon, everything around him became darker. There he was, returning to the great Begnion tower. He was standing up, frozen by a sudden weapon going through his body, lodging inside his back and protruding out from his stomach; it was a silver sword, bathing in his own blood.

His dream made him totally oblivious of the reality, causing him to not realize that there was a hidden fifth enemy after him.

-----OMGwtfBBQ-----

It was then I felt something sleazy; something was missing in the surrounding. Yes, we were winning this fight; obviously, those Begnion soldiers, even with Ashera's blessing, couldn't do a thing against us! They were blindly fighting for their own powers, but we were fighting for lives and the whole world!

Was it the combat anxiety? Or maybe because the battle was almost over already? I took a look on our troop, and few of us were missing. That was not usual. The tower was huge, but we were bright enough to stay together. If people were missing, then something must have happened.

It was up to me, the great knight Kieran, to rescue those who were lost! It seemed I saw that delinquent running toward that direction. No enemy was following me, so I didn't have a moment to lose! I guided my horse, Chili toward where I thought my rival was. I could see some corpses; none of them were my friends, luckily!

Soon, not to far away, I saw the boy of the mercenaries, running toward me and Chili with the maiden of dawn at his side. What were they doing far from everyone? When I was close enough to him, he raised up his hand high, waving it, trying to get my attention. "Sir Kieran! Sir Kieran! Is that you?"

I ordered Chili to stop his track. The boy got closer to me, trembling with tension. "Rolf? Something happened?"

He started to stir up a little. "It's Oscar! He's gone very far that way! He needs help! Micaiah and I are weaponless, so we couldn't help him… He went far to take the enemies away from me! Please! Go help him!"

What? That silly rival… Why did he go to fight them alone? Taking enemies far from him? Ah, I understood; it was a diversion to save his little brother. That was truly his technique, one he would use often back in the knights to save friends. "You said there?" I asked him, pointing toward the way he came from.

"Yeah! Please be quick!"

My horse took a step behind before rushing to the direction given by the teenager. "Don't worry, boy! I will bring your brother back alive, rest assured!" I exclaimed with a huge, confident grin before I proceed to rush in the way to find my rival. After these words, Rolf lowered his arms with relief. He was going to see his brother safe and sound, as I said it.

But, that maiden of dawn beside the boy, why was she still trembling?

-----YEYEYEYEY-----

Soon, his soul would be leaving him little by little, his surroundings around him started to blur, sounds weren't more than small murmurs. How miserable he felt, on his knees, his arms falling limply; he couldn't do a thing, besides having his whole upper body heavily leaning onto the weapon that was piercing him in his belly at whole, keeping him in this agonizing pose.

In the soft noises he could hear, he distinguished a human laugh. "Hehe… Curse you, knight of Crimea, Ashera's traitor! Here you are into deep trouble! So, how do you feel, suffering like this? That's it! Die! A long and painful death is what those who betray us deserve!"

Whatever the enemy said, everything that came out from his mouth was a mere windy sound like the rest, since, anyhow, nothing could be done for him. Too bad, if he had kept his last vulnerary, he might be able to relief himself from a little pain and try to get that weapon out from himself. All the remaining blood was flowing away from him, and no healing item could possibly even help him. Alas, it was too late to survive this.

Survive… for the mercenary company, for the knights of Crimea, for his little brothers, and for Kieran.

K- Kieran?

Of course! The Crimean royal knight second in command will come to help him!

Really? But, who do I see, there, bathing in his own blood? No, that was impossible… from all of Yune's troop, not him!

The swordmaster noticed my coming and quickly retrieved his weapon from its place. _Its place_, from his _bloody_ stomach, then making him fall just like a lifeless object. Argh! That cursed soldier of order, he will pay! Those swordmasters always caused me trouble because of their skilled ability with their speed, and obviously, with my huge axe, I couldn't move too well and fast… ( but that day, he won't be able to resist me, that was for sure! ) Rage consumed my soul so much I was attacking him repeatedly without thinking, and he dodged all my strikes. That blasted cur!

But that idiot had been too much aiming for me and my attacks that he forgot another of his enemies' presence. In fact, while he kept laughing at my rage, someone else pushed him hard from the side, making him drop his weapon; Lass was always there, wanting revenge for her fallen friend, and with her powerful snout, she pushed him so suddenly that he started to lose his balance.

Here was my chance to strike, and I did it! My axe finished that damned swordmaster, and the fight was really over, finally.

Something else would be over, though. No…

I dropped my axe on the ground, slightly shaken from every part, and I took a look on the green knight, heavily lying on the ground, his life kept disappearing from him. In a desperate move, I jumped from my mount and rushed to him. Damn, Kieran, it was not the time to fall into despair! As long as there was life, there was hope! I took my rival fearfully in my arms and I rested his head on my knees. "Damn, Oscar! Wake up! It isn't the time to sleep!" I shouted at him with worry and rage. "You're a knight! You can resist more than that!" There was still no answer and I started to lose my cool. Quick, I need an elixir! I took a bottle and opened it. I immediately pushed the bottle into his mouth, hoping he would drink it.

But he didn't. Why was that cur refusing the elixir? Or maybe he was too weak to shallow anything… No, this couldn't end that way… I said I would bring him to his brother safe and sound, and I will!

Soon, I heard a cough from him. I felt relieved that his throat might have been freed from everything until I saw the atrocious mix of the elixir and the blood flowing out from his lips. After all these coughs, enough of his own blood was released from his throat to give him the ability to speak again. No, he mustn't speak, he must keep his strength!

"K- Kier…ran…"

My veins jolted. If he could speak, then he could have another elixir! I took out another one fast, my last one, in fact.

"N…no…"

What? No? What was his problem? He refused the elixir? Whatever he was thinking, he will take it!

"Kieran, I… lost too…m-much blood… Elixir wo-won't do g-good…" No! Why was he wasting all his energy to talk? Stop it, damnit!

"Blast! Oscar! If you keep talking, you will die! You can't die now, you know? People need you!"

He ignored what I just said, as if he couldn't hear me, or he was simply too stubborn, but what he was going to say would just leave me frozen as if I was to stay that way the rest of my life. "K- Kieran… I… love you…"

I couldn't speak anymore, I was trembling… of fear and joy, strangely. Much sadness took over my mind, though I tried to not show it. If he decided to tell me such things, maybe there was no hope left for him. But these words were so soothing they made my soul relaxed. I suddenly felt shy and red like a young teenager being complimented by a loved one. "Oscar, don't say things like that…" I told him like a little boy in love… like I was at the moment.

It was then he rose up his eyelid slowly, revealing his two beautiful emeralds he kept hiding from everyone. My heart was beating with all its strength. I could only stand there, hypnotized by them and I believed he knew it gave me that effect since that whole situation brought him a little petty smile, which reassured me.

"R- Rival…" he called me, silently. "I'd like… a last kiss…"

I wanted to crumble. He never really called me "rival" that way before. If he wanted to amuse me at such time, it wasn't successful at all, obviously; but… a _last_ kiss?

I didn't know what to do, I felt like my all my dreams were being crushed by one single strike. My friend was going to disappear from this world very soon and there was nothing that could be done to change that.

Oscar seemed to be holding with all his remaining power the very thin rope that was separating him from life and beyond, only waiting for that last kiss to release it so he could fall in peace in the other world. He was resisting his painful injury, for me…

He didn't have to wait any longer.

I lowered my head toward his, trying as much as possible to keep a compassionate face, and I softly put my lips on his.

I was imagining myself like in the older times when we were still together with the knights. There were so little time we had occasions together alone, and even less for a loving moment. However, there was that last day I saw him, after that long and famous fight against some rebels in the country; he saved me from a certain death by creating a diversion, like the one he did to save his brother.

That very same day, I was lying miserably on a bed, bandages all over me, while a nurse was trying to sooth my injuries, against my will, of course, since the great knight Kieran won't give up his injuries that easily: he will fight them like a man!

But that day, Oscar came to visit me, checking my state. Of course, I had to stay strong before a rival and resist everything he would give me, but no! He had to force a kiss on me!

Why? To calm me , maybe?

Whatever the reason, his plan worked! That cur, who succeeded into reassuring my nerves, was always more talented than me at everything, including playing with people's feelings! Because of him, the nurses accomplished their goal in using a sleep staff on me successfully, making me asleep for a whole week!

And that idiot, he had to leave the knights while I was blacked out!

That kiss… I wanted another one!

Another one…

Alas, there it was, that other kiss. It wasn't what I expected, but if it pleased my rival, then I would enjoy this moment with him.

Despite all the blood sticking on my lips, I didn't want to let him go. Not ever! But I knew what was coming. Soon, his strength began fading away from his body. There was so little life in him that he couldn't keep his head up anymore, not even rising his eyelids high. He still kept that smile with the remaining efforts.

"T- Thank you, Ki… er… ran…" he moaned so quietly and softly, his little voice keeping me from shivering. As he hid away his wonderful green eyes, he told me: "T- Tell… Boyd and… R- Rolf… I love… 'em…"

I didn't know why I was remembering that day, ten years ago…

"_Excellent! Don't ever die on me, squinty boy!"_

"_Haha! Of course not, Kieran."_

"_Hm, you promise me, then?"_

"_Sure. It's a promise I'm making to you. Remember, each promise I made before had been followed, and I won't make exception with yours."_

"_Ha! You better tell the truth, because a lie is one of the nastiest and worst words for a knight to say!"_

…

A lie. He had never lied to me before.

But there he was, all feeble, his lips weakly opened, trace of blood all over his lower face, and a little tear coming from his shutting emeralds.

He was now gone, making the most painful lie he could have done and breaking one of his most beautiful promises.

-----ElchiDeservesDeathForThis-----

Damn, damn, damnit! It was the third time he had counted, but four people were still missing in the group, including his two brothers. Why did the fight have to end that way? He didn't understand; he even had warned Rolf about the danger of straying away from the group! He truly hoped nothing too bad had happened to him, but with such little brat, we never knew.

Somehow, a little jealousy took over his mind. It seemed the rest of the group were all well, beside some injuries, especially that young swordmaster; Edward, was it his name? That poor boy, so young and still lively in this war. He felt so pathetic to see a child in this army.

A child, like that Rolf…

"Shit! Stop these awful negative thoughts!" the warrior roared with such a loud voice. Everyone turned to him, jolted by his sudden cry. Embarrassed, Boyd scratched his head with confusion, giving them a fake smile.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. It came from that maiden of dawn's acolyte, Sothe, who looked worried as well. "Hey…" the younger man called. "You're thinking about your brothers, huh?" He then lowered his head with a sad eye. "Micaiah's missing as well…"

Even though the warrior had never really liked that Micaiah girl, he felt pity for him. He shouldn't only feel for his mercenaries' family during this time of war where all hopes for the world were resting on them. He knew he must stay strong for the group's moral.

"Hey, we're here!"

A voice. That voice he could hear from afar; it was so familiar. It looked like Rolf's… Rolf? But then, that little Rolfie was alive and well! Beside him was Sothe's famous friend, Micaiah, who seemed to be weakened by something. Without hesitating, Sothe rushed to his loved one for a long and soothing hug.

Boyd's fingers were suddenly falling all soft by trembling of relief before running toward the newcomers. "Boyd!" the young Rolf exclaimed happily, opening his arms to welcome his older brother. However, he was rather welcomed by a violent pat behind his head. Micaiah and Sothe jumped at the sudden warrior's behavior.

"Damn you, little brat!" Boyd scolded, his hands strictly put on his waists. "How many times did I have to tell you to not stray away from the group?"

For once, Rolf did not say anything to reply, which worried the big brother.

Ignoring the childish behavior of the two siblings, Sothe decided to turn to his beloved friend. "Micaiah! Are you all right?"

The young woman pushed him away gently. She didn't have anything, fortunately. "Yes, I'm all right…" she answered him softly. "Don't worry about me; you should worry more about this young boy. He was about to be killed!"

It was at that moment a terrified expression appeared on the young warrior's face. Rolf, about to be killed? How did this happen? He turned to his little brother, his shivering fingers all spread far from each other in the emptiness. He did not know if he wanted to punish him for his mistake that almost cost him his life, or to take him in his arms, relieved to see him alive after a rude battle. Confused, he simply crossed his arms and gave his proud and strict look. "Pah! At least we're all alive, no?" he declared, trying to keep a false smile.

Looking sad, Rolf replied. "But there is still big brother and his knight friend…"

The warrior gave a childish pat on his brother's head to mock him a little. "Bah! Oscar and the other guy will be all right! They have more fighting experience than us, you know?"

Shivers could be felt on Micaiah's pale skin before these words, but she tried to hide it the most she could. Fortunately, no one noticed it.

The commander, Ike joined the little band with a reassured look. Of course, he didn't want to lose anyone and even less someone from his mercenaries' family. "So, now that we're together, should we go get back our two brave knight friends?" he suggested everyone with a gentle grin before turning to the rest of the group. "Who has an idea of where to find Oscar and Kieran?"

The young green-haired archer waved his hand in the air with a shout. "Me, me! I saw big brother going toward that direction, and his knight friend went there as well!"

Ike looked at the direction Rolf was pointing and ordered everyone to make their way toward there. "Well, that's exactly our next destination, so let's go!"

The two brothers took an advance from the others, fully prepared to see their oldest brother back. However, Micaiah was still perplexed. She was able to predict future events, and all she could feel was negative emotions when thinking of what was going to come. Lost in her thoughts, she didn't even notice that most of the group were already far forward.

"Micaiah?" a voice called her suddenly. She could recognize Edward's happy voice. "Say, what are you doing? You'll be late!" His tone was slightly teasing.

"You don't look very good…" Edward's best friend, Leonardo, added with a slightly more serious air.

The young woman noticed her friends, patiently waiting for her. With Edward and Leonardo was Sothe. The young and mature thief seemed to be more worried than the two others. "Leonardo is right, Micaiah." Sothe threw out. "You're acting as if some kind of doom is upon us."

How she would like to be able to hide her emotions! She wanted to keep her calm, but she couldn't. She tried something to counter what her friend just said. "No, no, I'm fine; I'm just a little tired… It happens when Yune is speaking to me. And, to tell the truth, I used my skill to help healing that boy's injury. This tires me a lot, you know?"

Edward and Leonardo nodded in understanding, being comprehensive after these revelations since she had so much work to do for the troop, but Sothe was not so sure. As soon as the two teenagers were far enough to not hear them, Sothe revealed: "Micaiah, you had the same feeling not long before Nolan disappeared. Don't tell me… this is going to happen again…"

"Sothe, please, I'm tired…"

The thief let out a long sigh. "All right, if you insist, I'll stop and I'll believe you."

A little far away, the others already made a good quarter of an hour of walking, and the road seemed to be long. Decidedly, two knights on fast mounts could have gone pretty far. Boyd started to get frustrated. "Damnit, Rolf! Are you sure Oscar went to that way?"

The green-haired archer replied with an annoyed look. "Yes, I'm telling you! Even Micaiah saw him go that way!"

"Bah, are you making all of this up?"

"Hey, believe it or not, I have a far better sight than yours!"

"Oh yeah? Well, mind you that-"

A sound took them back in another silent moment: it was a horse neigh. Good grief, the two others should be close enough! "Boyd, you heard it, didn't you?" Rolf asked, lending his ear toward the direction where the noise came from.

"Yeah!" his brother exclaimed, all excited. He turned his eyes around and found on one of those high platforms a head that looked like Lass's one, their brother's mare. "Hey, Lass!" he shouted toward the beast. "It's good to see you again! You know where to find big brother?" Lass stayed there, watching them from afar before turning back to where she came from. "I think she wants us to follow her."

Rolf crossed his arms, trying to hide away his nervousness. "Hm, I don't like this…" he remarked. "Usually, we'd see Oscar with her, but I can't see him anywhere…"

General Ike made his first step. "So, what are we waiting for? To get back together?" he told them with a secured smile.

"I'm following you, boss!" the warrior answered while Rolf was still in the doubt.

When a hand patted him on his shoulder, Rolf turned around to see Rhys, the mercenaries' priest. His gentle smile was always soothing, just like his brother's. "Hey, Rolf! Why aren't you going? Your brothers are waiting for you!"

The young teen lowered his head. "I'm feeling something ugly…" he revealed, shivering a little.

"And why is so?" the young priest asked, confused.

"I don't know… But I guess I better have gone one day, don't you think?" the boy said with a forced grin. He finally decided to make a step forward to the stairs that linked his floor and the platform. While he made his advance, he called his brother. "Boyd! Do you see something?"

There was no answer. This was getting uglier. As he was about to get to the top, the archer called again, this time with a loud and angrier shout. "Hey, Boyd! I'm calling y-"

A terrifying surprise was waiting for him, totally shutting him. Suddenly, everything around him became dark and cold. There was nothing around him, beside his oldest brother, now inert in my arms, bloodied of his own red fluid.

For a good long minute, no other sound could be heard.

Soon, few laments broke the silence. Boyd, standing still beside the commander, was the first to step forward, trying with all his strength to hide his tears, but his emotions took over: he had never expected to deal with death so soon within his family… Me neither, anyway. He fell on his knees in front of me, sobbing with sadness as he was trying to make out few words, though nothing coherent could have gone out. Confused and devastated, in a desperate move, he took from me the now colder body of what had been his oldest brother, trying to keep him warm between his strong arms as if he wanted to revive with his own warmth the one who had sacrificed his dreams to save his little family.

Why, of all the troop, must have death fallen on him?

He took a look at me a moment, noticing some trace of blood on my lips, but he would simply ignore it for the moment, returning his attention to his brother. "Big brother…" the warrior murmured to his cold brother as if he was still alive. "Wake up, man… Please… You've slept enough, so you can wake up now… I beg of you…"

As for the other younger brother, he kept his distance, paralyzed by the fear, the fear of seeing the truth… The fear to realize that his brother Oscar was not there anymore.

But it was obviously too late to turn away from the truth.

"No…" I could hear him say softly with his trembling lips. "Big brother, don't tell me it's true… You can't be… Y- You can't be… not now…" More tears fell down, mixing themselves with his sobs, his head lowered with his higher shoulders, realizing that his brother might had been killed because of him: Oscar had done all he could to take the enemies away from him with the price of his own life.

After all, he had truly saved his family until the end, but not like how he had hoped.

Rolf heavily fell down on his knees, then on his two closed fists. His teeth grinded in anger toward himself and sadness over the whole thing, knowing he couldn't go back to avoid this tragedy that could have been easily avoided. "No… No… NOO!" he screamed. "It's my fault! Why? He d-didn't have to save me! No… I didn't deserve this…"

I couldn't imagine how devastated the two brothers felt at the moment; I was already shattered by the sadness, but to see them so broken, these two who grew up with him and who had almost been raised by him, I couldn't really think of anything, but I knew this boy didn't have to feel any guilt for this. After all, the last thoughts of my rival were about his two brothers.

I had never been the best at consoling people, but there was something I needed to do. I approached the boy, confidently, trying to hide my sadness, and I put a hand on him. "Rolf?" I called him. He turned to me with visible shiny tears on his eyes. "Don't feel guilty; your brother's been happy he could have saved you."

Yet, the rest of us couldn't be as happy as him.

Guess what, that maiden of dawn's predictions were right.

-----HummInsertComment-----

There was no more time for sadness and desperation. We had a mission to finish, and the only way was to persevere with hope, strength, and the support within us all.

The death of my dear friend gave us another reason to fight until the end. And that reason was to avoid another disaster like that. And the faster we were done, the quicker we'll get that peace we were all searching for, that peace that will, let's hope for it, last for a long, long time.

We fought the rest of the army of order: the dragons and their terrible but legendary strength, the mastermind behind all that war, Sephiran, and finally, the goddess herself, the great Ashera.

Wait, so we did it, finally… We won this war! Everyone, let's rejoice of our victory that we all deserved! Hurrah, hurrah!

We won this world battle, but at what price?

The poor dragon prince had been forced to sacrifice his father who had allied himself, with the rest of his people, to the goddess of order; the empress Sanaki had to find out in a painful way the traitorous mind of the one she had considered her wonderful father, and to see him fall by the blade of her own allies was too painful for her sight, though she had to accept his fate for his madness that killed so many innocent people.

After we rejoiced of the victory and the newly created peace, the goddess Yune flied away to rejoin her defeated sister, and the whole world that had been changed into stone turned back to life in the joy and prosperity.

Unfortunately, nothing could have been done for those who had fallen in the fight.

So, rival, how's it going, above? You must be above, aren't you? Of course! You were always here for the justice! Don't worry; life on the ground's well and wonderful! Your brothers have promised you to live their lives at their fullest for being saved by you several times! I heard recently about Rolf asking the mercenaries' commander's sister out, with a little jealousy from your other brother Boyd, but nothing too bad. I think that guy still has a crush on his sub commander, that red-haired, old knight. Her name was Titania, right? Let's hope this works out for him (though I doubt it, she probably doesn't like younger men).

Oh, and what about me? Well I'm still the Crimean royal knight second in command Kieran, the one and only one, and loving my title! Even though the world has been saved from the madness of our old goddess, we still have some random rebels stuck at every part of the country; you know how some people are never happy with the politics despite all the good stuff they bring (I mean, with Elincia as our queen, why rebelling against her? Ha! Those foolish rebels don't know with who they are dealing with!). We are fighting for the country's safety, for the world, her people and to maintain the peace and justice. But let's not forget one thing.

I'm fighting in your name, for your dreams.

Haha! Good old Oscar, it looks like you're still around!

Oh, but life's still boring without you…

-----THEEND-----

**_Oh, and alternate ending :_**

**…**

**Wut? WAIT. DID HE JUST DIE?**

***resets the game***

* * *

_Yup. This is the end. All right, I'M SORRY TO MAKE HIM DIE. Well, from my story summary, it was expected I was going to kill someone, lol. To tell the truth, I like tragedies in fan fiction, lulz. And it was obvious I got extremely lazy in the ending part, not wanting to describe the whole part where they fight Ashera and stuff._

_PS : This is actually the first story I ever finished to write, lulz._


End file.
